PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE

ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Novavax Inc.
(Nasdaq: NVAX) said today that it has significantly enhanced both the quality
and purity of its virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine for HIV/AIDS. Pre-
clinical studies are under way using the improved HIV-1 vaccine, and planning
has begun to advance the new vaccine to human clinical trials.

Novavax is working in collaboration with scientists from the University of
Alabama-Birmingham, Emory University and Harvard Medical School under funding
from a grant from the National Institutes of Health.

"This advance demonstrates the flexibility and broad applicability of our
VLP platform technology and the skill of our development team in engineering
customized vaccines," said Novavax President and Chief Executive Officer Dr.
Rahul Singhvi. "After demonstrating immunogenicity in pre-clinical studies
with our VLP vaccines for influenza, we are eager to develop VLP vaccines
against other infectious diseases."

Early versions of Novavax's HIV vaccine were successful in triggering
immune responses in pre-clinical studies. However, Novavax scientists and its
collaborators recently discovered a way to optimize the expression of the HIV-
1 envelope, which is a principle target for immunity in humans.

"The scientific community has been searching for a way to create an
HIV/AIDS vaccine based on the HIV-1 viral envelope with a natural three-
dimensional structure to trigger a protective immune response," said Dr. Gale
Smith, Novavax's Vice President of Vaccine Development.

"A major scientific challenge we face is the genetic diversity of HIV. A
VLP-based vaccine for HIV has the potential to be highly immunogenic due to
the particle nature of the vaccine and, because its structure is correct,
could lead to a vaccine protective against a much wider diversity of viruses,"
he said.

Virus-like particles mimic the natural virus in structure but do not
contain a virus's genetic material required for replication or infection.
When inoculated into the body, these particles have the ability to trigger
strong immune responses that are capable of protecting against viral
infection.

According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 39.5 million
people worldwide are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and last
year alone 2.9 million people died of AIDS-related illnesses. Public health
officials agree that an effective vaccine will be the best way to halt the
AIDS epidemic.

ABOUT NOVAVAX

Novavax Inc. is committed to leading the global fight against infectious
disease by creating novel, highly potent vaccines that are safer and more
effective than current preventive options. Using the company's proprietary
virus-like particle (VLP) and Novasome(R) adjuvant technologies, Novavax is
developing vaccines to protect against H5N1 pandemic influenza, seasonal flu
and other viral diseases. Novavax's particulate vaccines closely match
disease-causing viruses while lacking the genetic material to cause disease,
which provides potential for greater immune protection at lower doses than
current vaccines. With an exclusive portable manufacturing system that allows
for rapid mass-production of vaccines, Novavax is uniquely positioned to meet
global public health needs.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements herein relating to future financial or business performance,
conditions or strategies and other financial and business matters, including
expectations regarding future revenues, operating expenses, and clinical
developments are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act. Novavax cautions that these forward-looking
statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which
change over time. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially
from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or historical
experience include risks and uncertainties, including the failure by Novavax
to secure and maintain relationships with collaborators; risks relating to the
early stage of Novavax's product candidates under development; uncertainties
relating to clinical trials; risks relating to the commercialization, if any,
of Novavax's proposed product candidates; dependence on the efforts of third
parties; dependence on intellectual property; competition for clinical
resources and patient enrollment from drug candidates in development by other
companies with greater resources and visibility, and risks that we may lack
the financial resources and access to capital to fund our operations. Further
information on the factors and risks that could affect Novavax's business,
financial conditions and results of operations, is contained in Novavax's
filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available
at http://www.sec.gov. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the
date of this press release, and Novavax assumes no duty to update forward-
looking statements.